Ukiyoe
by GeneralCuster
Summary: Mugen picks up a rare copy of Fuu's Ukiyoe portrait on a whim. What starts out as a silly piece of paper that he doesn't give a wit about except to laugh at becomes more than he ever imagined. Adventures abound for the trio! Fugen
1. Chapter 1

Summary: Mugen picks up a rare copy of Fuu's Ukiyoe portrait on a whim. What starts out as a silly piece of paper that he doesn't give a wit about except to laugh at becomes more than he ever imagined.

Disclaimer: I've never owned anything even remotely related to copyrights in my pitiful existence. *sigh* Now let me go munch on some comfort food. . .

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Mugen lay on his back staring at a piece of paper. "What's that?" Fuu asked from across the campfire. "Are you reading?"

"None of your damn business." He growled.

"MUGEN!" She screeched, "I was just curious you don't have to be so rude you jerk!"

"Yeah. Well, curiosity killed the cat, little kitten."

Fuu pulled her legs into her chest and set her chin on her knees breathing out a quick sigh.

"Can't you just tell me what you're reading?"

"Shut up."

"MUGEN!"

"I said shut up bitch!"

With a melodramatic pitiful moan she slowly unfurled from her position and stood. Then snappishly walked over to where Mugen lay.

"Oi, Get away!" Mugen jerked up into a sitting position, hastily folded up the piece of parchment he had been regarding for the past half hour, sat on it, then took to giving Fuu one of his death glares that could light a baby's hair on fire.

"But I want to see what you're reading!" She whined.

"Too bad bitch." He drawled while giving his left ear a thorough cleaning with his index finger.

"Hmph!"Fuu gave in and sat resignedly down with a plop. She knew when she had been defeated. Whatever Mugen was hiding he would guard with his life. It just wasn't worth it to work him up into a froth just to sate her curiosity. Wheedling, shoving and sneaking about never worked with Mugen. He got madder and yelled more if she wheedled and whined, wouldn't and couldn't be moved by her meager strength if she tried to move him by force (she felt like the wind in that old story where the wind tried to move a mountain), and stealing and looking into his stuff would make him mad as hell; not that she had ever tried the last one. Instead she satisfied herself by going through a list of things that were printed on paper that Mugen could possibly be interested in that much. She quickly settled that it was probably either a raunchy story that he was undoubtedly having difficulty reading or a wanted poster with himself as the star.

Satisfied with her dual conclusion she groaned and stood up again shuffling tiredly back to her own sleeping mat. Letting out a dainty sigh as she reclined against the hard ground. '_Why are there always rocks were I have to sleep? I wonder if there are rocks were Mugen and Jin are._' She mulled. '_And why do they always have to poke me in the right side of my back_?'

As Fuu dozed off Mugen watched intently for any signs of further nightly activity from the girl. Though from her light snoring it was apparent that she was going to be sawing logs like a master woodcutter for the remainder of the night, rocks or no rocks. But he wanted to make sure. It had been too close. '_Way too close_.' He should have known it was a bad idea to take it out when she and dojo boy were right across from him on the other side of the fire. Maybe Jin had already caught a glimpse of what was on the paper. '_Nah. I woulda known_.' He dismissed. '_If fish face knows then I'm fucked._'

He settled in for the night as Jin sat against a tree taking first watch. Mugen grunted to himself and resolved that he would never, ever take it out again while they were around.

But he couldn't resist.

He carefully pulled the piece of parchment from under his bottom, dusted it off, and gently folded it open. It never failed to make the breath hitch in his throat. He was a drowning man in an ocean of shit and blood, and this, this dumbass thing, was the plank of wood that supported him. He carefully and methodically traced the outline, then the details of the portrait. Actually, he was surprised that he had made it this long without taking it out around the other two. He had been so rigorously secretive when he had first gotten his calloused and worn hands on it. It almost made him want to laugh now.

He let out a low snort that only served to attract Jin's attention.  
The two men locked eyes, Mugen's fierce rabid gaze meeting one of steely indifference. Jin, deciding that though a staring contest was a valid battle of the wills it was also very childish, let his eyes slide away first.

Mugen continued his enraptured perusal of the paper. It looked so much like her. '_Yeah right_.' He laughed to himself. '_That tit is so fucking exaggerated. Unflattering kimono my ass._' But he still slowly and deliberately traced the outline of the soft creamy lump lingering over the pink pearl in the center. Fuck, he couldn't keep doing this to himself. The problem was it was too late. He was addicted. It had become something akin to a physical need for him; this urge to take out this ridiculous piece of paper and trace along the lines. It was stupid. And it was driving him insane. It wasn't just that it was a picture of a semi nude woman. He had tried that on himself. Those stupid simple little lies that could blind him for just awhile and make him feel more himself. It was also because it was her.

"Fuu." He groaned softly.

Fuck. He felt like such a god damned fucking pervert. Like something dirty that wanted to touch something clean. But he knew if he ever touched that milky skin of hers it would be tainted, stained, dirtied by him. He was a criminal. He was filth.

But he still wanted her. And at least this mockery, which he had given all the kindness and happiness of Fuu and none of her god-awful shrewishness, could draw his eyes away from the original and keep him sated for now.

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------ AN: Meh. I might continue this. I might not. Oneshot, don't oneshot. Noodle, don't noodle. It's all too complex for me. I would like to continue this, but frankly.  
I'm stuck.

I apologize for any OOCness, I try to keep characters as they are, but it's difficult. I am but a young padawan and character capturing is a mighty task, but when it's done well by a master it's awesomeness incarnate. Also this is my very first fanfic EVER!


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: I don't own diddly related to Samurai Champloo's copyrights. This goes for all subsequent chapters of this stupid story. Please don't sue. I only have $1,000 in my checking account.

**- - - - - **

If someone were to claim that Fuu was neither a curious nor stubborn girl that someone would have been undeniably and completely wrong, as both Jin and Mugen would so happily tell them. And as little Fuu crept along the deserted path among the bamboo to the secluded hot spring near their little camp out for the night in a dilapidated shack several days after the incident with Mugen and his 'precious' paper, coming up with excuses to validate what she was now doing was becoming increasingly more difficult. _'OK. I'm not spying. I'm just . . . er . . . just . . . Well! At least I'm not stealing . . .well, not really anyway . . . just sorta, um, borrowing . . . and . . . Hey! Isn't this just like what Mugen and Jin did when they read my diary! That's right! What comes around goes around! Psh! Mugen's only getting his just desserts! After all, a little snooping never hurt anybody anyway!_.

So while Mugen soaked drunkenly in the hot spring and Jin just soaked, having consumed far less alcohol than his bathing companion, Fuu was attempting to noiselessly sneak up unnoticed on Mugen's pile of discarded belongings.

**Crunch!**

'_Shoot!'_ Fuu quickly looked to the ground. Just as she suspected under her slipper lay a broken twig. Adrenaline and panic rushed through her leaving her heart pounding and her eyes shot up to quiver on the pond where the two semi-submerged bathers apparently had not noticed a single thing. She let out a breath of relief that she hadn't realized she'd been holding in.

Unfortunately for Fuu one of the bathers had noticed.

Fortunately, it wasn't Mugen.

Jin, who had tensed at the noise, sighed when he caught a glimpse of pink in his peripheral vision and just assumed that Fuu had finally gotten curious about the male body and was doing some long awaited peeping. He had expected something like this to happen eventually. At least that's what he told himself, but the thought that Fuu was watching him still made him slightly uncomfortable and vaguely itchy in a way that reminded him of the odd rash he had picked up after eating prawns at a dive in Nagoya.

Jin subtly shifted his gaze to Mugen who didn't seem to have noticed the presence of their female companion who was currently crouched directly behind them beside the individual piles of discarded clothing, and Jin was not about to rat her out to the uncouth man who would undoubtedly tease her endlessly about it. He sighed again and sunk deeper into the warm water.

- - - - -

She had done it! As Fuu cautiously unfolded the paper she allowed herself a moment of triumph to revel in the glory of being able to sneak up on two lethal samurai and rifle through their stuff. She briefly entertained the idea of plucking Jin's glasses from among his clothing and surprising him by wearing them. However, the shock of what was on Mugen's coveted paper sent her triumph plummeting to her stomach where it quietly gurgled and sunk like a doomed ship at sea. Confusion, panic and fear took hold of her body. _'I don't understand. It's me. Why does he have this?'_ She quickly refolded the paper and carefully tried to place it back as she had found it before hastily and unsteadily attempting to make her way back to camp.

Meanwhile, as Fuu rustled through Mugen's things the noise had eventually reached though his sensitive ears and had been laboriously and belatedly processed by his inebriated brain.

As he began to turn his head towards the noise Jin's hand suddenly latched itself to his cranium preventing him from turning it further. Jin instantly had the whole of Mugen's limited attention. "Oi, what the fuck is wrong with you dojo boy?"

" . . ." Jin gritted his teeth and gave an inward sigh.

"I _said_ What the fuck is wrong with you?!" Mugen demanded.

" . . . " Jin remained stoic. He was not the best liar, even with his pokerface, and a valid excuse for suddenly grabbing hold of another man's skull while in the nude completely eluded him. So he opted for silence. It was better than saying something completely moronic that the ex-pirate would use as fuel for future taunts.

"Would you mind letting go of my head fish face?" Mugen growled.

"I can't do that Mugen." Jin sighed in exasperation.

"Why the hell not?! Mugen barked back.

" . . ." Jin's mind wandered a bit as he thought to himself _'Why me.'_

"Yo. Four eyes." Mugen had had enough. He stood up revealing himself in all his naked glory, successfully dislodging Jin's hold on his head. "Wanna fight?"

"No." Jin's eyebrow twitched. Mugen standing naked in front of him with his manhood in his face was not something he found pleasant. He was becoming increasingly more aggravated and wished Fuu would leave already so he could stop this nonsense while he was ahead and avoid making a fool of himself.

"What the fuck you bastard!?" Mugen slurred, making a rude hand gesture.

"Just sit down Mugen." Jin said closing his eyes as he pressed at the area between his brows attempting to soothe the migraine he knew was coming. However, he felt his sense of duty call. He knew in order to keep Mugen from noticing Fuu he had to keep him distracted.

Jin swiftly stood up. The water coursing down his pale flesh as his left hand reattached itself to Mugens head. As long as he had Mugen's attention then Fuu's activities wouldn't be an issue. However, he sighed inwardly, she had undoubtedly had her curiosity fulfilled by now.

Mugen ground his teeth. _'What the hell is that four eyed bastard doing? Oh hell no! He ain't going gay on me now is he?! Fuck that!'_

Mugen quickly snaked his own left hand up and onto Jin's head, "Haha! Got you now you bastard!" He crowed.

Jin's eyebrow twitched. Reaching up with his free hand he grabbed hold of Mugen's wrist and attempted to pry his head free of Mugen's grasp. Unfortunately Mugen would have none of that. Mimicking Jin's move he also attempted to free his trapped head. Ice-cold eyes met fiery hot ones in the staring match of the century as they both swiftly halted their attempts at freeing the other's hold and reapplied themselves in a knuckle cracking hold on each other's head-free hands.

As the duo pushed at each other, holding themselves at arms length, neither succeeding in dislodging the other, Jin had no opportunity to see Fuu sneak away rendering his attempt to protect her no longer necessary.

"LET GO YOU FUCKING GAY LORD!!!" Mugen howled.

"No."

"WHAT THE HELL!!

" . . . "

"YOU FUCKING ASSHOLE!!!"

"Sit down."

"NO YOU SIT DOWN!!!"

" . . ." Jin's brow twitched spasmodically.

"FUCK!!! LET GO OF MY HEAD!!!"

" . . . "

The way things were going Jin was contemplating ramming his soap into Mugen's overly large mouth and down his throat. The fantasy immediately became a reality and successfully stifled Mugen's yelling.

As Mugen coughed and gagged Jin just crossed his arms, twitched an eyebrow and humphed.

"Well at least your rotten mouth has finally gotten the washing it so badly needs" Jin stiffly replied to the further choking of his comrade.

- - - - -

When a rather disgruntled Jin finally arrived back at the hut they were sharing for the night after extracting himself from the heated pool and successfully avoiding a swordfight with Mugen (There was no way he was going to get sweaty after he had had his bath. If he did he would have to take a second one and Mugen was still there making a second bath impossible until he got his drunken ass out or he passed out and drowned, which would render the water unsuitable for bathing. Secretly Jin half-heartedly hoped Mugen would fall victim to the latter possibility.) He found Fuu curled up in the corner pretending to be asleep. _'Ah, she must be trying to avoid the embarrassment of looking at me after seeing me nude.'_ He conjectured. Dismissing her odd behavior and settling himself in for the night he dozed while listening to Fuu's breathing. _'You would think she'd know that we can tell whether or not she's asleep after all this time. Hmph.'_ He mused to himself while shifting to get more settled, contentedly crossing his arms and placing his hands into his sleeves.

Fuu remained confused and panicked over her discovery until it finally wore her down in the wee hours of the morning and she exhaustedly fell into a dreamless sleep. She was glad that Jin had accepted that she was asleep. Though she knew he wasn't the type to question. In the morning she had awoken to Jin moving about the cabin, stretched, yawned and felt much better despite the dark circles under her eyes. _'Maybe he just saved it as a silly souvenir? Or maybe he just kept it to laugh at.'_ She thought with a petulant pout.

'_He doesn't know I saw it anyway, so as long as I act normal and forget about it then everything will be normal. Besides, there's no need to be melodramatic about it.'_ She resolved.

She looked around the hut noticing Mugen's absence then glanced up to Jin who returned her stare for several seconds before they both looked to the door obviously sharing the same thought.

Jin and Fuu found Mugen passed out in the hot spring with his head lolling on the rocky bank encircling the pool with drool encrusted on the side of his open mouth. Apparently he'd slept there the entire night.  
Fuu's eye suddenly developed a tick and she grit her teeth before yelling "GET UP YOU DRUNKARD!!!" then promptly hitting Mugen with a slipper in the middle of the face. The previous night's discovery flying out the window for the time being.

**- - - - - **

AN: All you people who wrote reviews, faved, and added this story to your story alerts. THANK YOU!!! I have no idea how to do the review reply function. . . yet. . . so I couldn't reply to you all or thank you all individually. So I'll just say it here.

This was written after a venti frappacinno and with a swollen thumb from playing too much video games. Maybe the combo of too much coffee/too much video games just strokes my inner muse. Heh. *shrugs*

**Extra~**  
Fuu: You thought I was peeping?!  
Jin: Hn.  
Fuu: You do realize that I've bandaged your and Mugen's injuries, which require me to look at and touch your bodies, about a billion times don't you?  
Jin: Hrk! *blush*


	3. Chapter 3

AN: In case anyone is wondering "WHEN THE HELL DOES THIS SHIT TAKE PLACE?!" The answer is "I DON"T KNOW BITCHES!"

I thought about it a lot and really the only conclusion I've come to is that it definitely takes place after the whole Sara thing in whatever episode(s) that happens in. It could be this is taking place after some sort of magical reunion after the end of the series, but I'm not really interested in writing a flashback chapter right now (maybe later). Any way I write it I know it'll sound silly and preposterous. Which actually sounds a lot like all of my writing now that I think about it . . .

運命。

**- - - - - - - - **

'_Ow. Fuck. That little bitch didn't have to hit me so fucking hard. Damn it!'_ Mugen cursed to himself while stalking down the hot dusty road. He snuck a quick glance at the cause of the lump on his forehead. '_Man. As if I need a concussion on top of this massive hangover. Tch.'_

**ACHOO!!!**

"Mugen?" Fuu had stopped dead to turn and look at the surly criminal sulking at the rear of their little troupe, "Did you just sneeze?" A combination of surprise, shock and worry played across her face.

"Nah. Musta been your 'magination girly." He snuffled, looking to the side of the road at the surrounding forest avoiding her gaze.

By this time Jin had stopped as well. He gave a light sigh. "Mugen. We both know that that sneeze didn't come from either myself or Fuu, and seeing as there is no one else on the road at the present time, denying the fact that you just sneezed is quite ridiculous."

"Ah Shuddap." Mugen grumped. Stalking forward with his shoulders hunched.

Fuu was still looking at him funny and he didn't like it, it made him irritable. He shouldered past the both of them as quickly as possible without seeming rushed and continued down the road. "You two pussies coming or not?" He called back to them.  
'_Tch.'_

Fuu meanwhile was holding a mostly one-sided conversation with Jin. "Hey Jin. Don't you think it's odd? Mugen hardly ever sneezes. Do you think he got sick from lying in that hotspring all night?" She whispered in his ear while pulling on his sleeve.

Jin looked up to Mugen who was currently snorting and spitting on the side of the road without slowing his pace. "Hn. You know what they say about fools and colds."

"Yeah. But what if he gets really sick? Do you think we should stop? You know, maybe he needs to rest a bit or something."

Jin glanced down at Fuu who was currently gnawing on her lower lip. "Hn." Was all he said before glancing up again to look at Mugen.

"What if he gets sick and dies?" He heard her whisper half to him, half to herself while she stared fixedly at Mugen's back.

Jin didn't quite know what to say to this. 'Don't worry he'll be fine?' He didn't know what to say to Fuu when she asked these types of questions and it irked him.

" . . . "

"Mugen won't die so easily." He finally said.

Fuu gave him a furtive glance then looked down to the dirt path beneath her feet.

. . . . . . . . .

As the day wore on it became increasingly hot, dusty and windy. Windy with the sort of wind that doesn't alleviate the heat but only makes it worse. They were all thirsty and Fuu had begun to whine. "It's so hot! Can't we stop and rest in the shade for a while? I'm thirsty! Can't you guys find any water? Man, what kind of bodyguards can't even find water? Ouch! Hey! I think I'm getting sunburned! I want to sit down and take off my slippers my feet hurt!"

"Would you shut it!?" Mugen croaked turning back to look at her with squinted eyes then continuing down the road till he looked like a yurei. His lower half swallowed up by the dust eddying about on the surface of the road.

Fuu suppressed a shudder. Then quickly skipped ahead to catch up . . . . .

After what seemed to be endless walking in endless heat. The sun had finally hit its zenith making the heat doubly unbearable. Small rivulets of air danced about in illusionary patterns on the surface of the road that was now bereft of the hot wind that had plagued them earlier.

Ahead of Jin and Fuu, Mugen suddenly halted in the middle of the road. He held up a hand without turning to face his companions.

"Stop."

Without explanation he disappeared into the brush and trees to his left.

Mugen couldn't smell it. His nose had become stuffy and irritated, but he could feel the cool breeze that had blown out onto the hot road, and being a man of the water could tell that there had to be some sort of body of water in the direction he was headed. If he was wrong because of his fucked up nose some of the trees were going to pay with their branches.

There it was, a shallow stream glimmering faintly amongst the brush. He bent down to quench his thirst, then quickly stood and jogged back to the road. Grabbing Fuu around her upper arm he hauled her up from where she had been sitting, panting in the shade of the trees to the side of the road. He then proceeded to drag her through the rustling dry brush.

"Hey wait! Mugen stop! Where are we going!? Ouch! Hey! You're hurting my arm you jerk! Jin! Jin! Help me! I think Mugen's gone nuts!"

"Would ya stop whining!?" He growled down at her. "I'm just takin' you to the fucking stream. Or are ya not thirsty now?"

Fuu's mouth snapped shut.

Jin followed calmly behind. Even in the sweltering heat he refused to lose his stoic composure.

Arriving back at the stream Mugen immediately dumped Fuu in a patch of soft moss along the streambed. Abandoning her in favor of dunking his feverish head under the cool water. When he reemerged, his hair matted down and rivulets running down his face and neck, he turned his attention back to Fuu. Observing her for a few moments, then turning to Jin.

"Oi. Dojo boy. We should stop for today and just make camp here it's too hot." He looked back to Fuu who was greedily drinking from the stream, cheeks flushed and body trembling from the exertions of the day.

Jin halted in the middle of washing his face and neck to reply. "The next town is less than half a day's walk away. We should continue."

"She won't make it." Mugen nodded his head in Fuu's direction. "She looks like she's got sunstroke. You see it a lot in the new guys on ships."

"Hn." Jin looked around Mugen to Fuu whose face was still incredibly pink. Her breathing hadn't slowed and she was so intent on the water and her own ministrations that she had apparently not heard a word the two had said.

'_Perhaps Mugen's right. It's extremely odd for her not to participate in conversations, or at least listen in. Especially when it's about herself.' _Jin gave a noncommittal grunt and turned back to the water.

After resting on the cool bank for half an hour Jin had already decided it was unavoidable. The area near the stream was comfortable and dry, and the promise of free food in the telltale shimmers along the water urged him to his feet.

"I'll be back within an hour." He said before walking off downstream searching for a proper fishing spot.

Even after the half an hour of rest Fuu was still panting and she felt as though her heart was running in a race that she couldn't find the finish to. Mugen had been watching her off and on, and every time he turned to her she tried to figure out what she saw in his face, but each time he looked away before her exhausted brain could figure it out.

As Jin walked downriver from them, Mugen stood, walked over to Fuu and plopped down beside her spread-eagle form. He shrugged out of his sweat soaked haori. Leaned over to rinse it in the stream. Then pulling the now deep crimson cloth out, wrung it. He then leaned over to Fuu, and before she could complain, set the now folded article of clothing on her burning forehead.

"Thanks Mugen." Fuu managed to mumble between panting breaths.

"Whatever girly." He scoffed before quickly turning to face the river. But as Fuu watched his tanned face she could have sworn it turned a darker shade. _'Is he blushing? Hahaha! . . . . I must really be delirious if I'm seeing that! Maybe _I'll_ die, just like mom. She died so easily . . . One month she was fine, then the next she was sick, then the one after that she was dead.'_

_. . .  
_

"- lotsa water."

"Huh?"

Mugen huffed angrily. "Weren't you listening?! Fuck! . . . . . Fine, I'll say it again. Ya gotta take that", he forcefully pointed to his dampened haori resting on her forehead, "And rub it on ya. And I mean all over, like a bath. And ya gotta drink losta water."

Fuu was lost. "Why?"

Mugen raised an eyebrow at her. "Why do ya think?"

"Uh. . . ."

Mugen snorted like a bull. "Just do it alright!"

Fuu looked to the haori that was now in her hands and gulped. She looked up to Mugen who lazily returned her gaze from the corner of his eye.

"I'm not lookin' alright. Now just do it." He said gruffly before turning and lying on his side facing downriver and away from Fuu.

He heard splashing and the rustling of cloth from behind him. Closing his eyes he allowed himself to relax into the moss; he'd know when Jin was coming back since he was facing the direction he'd gone in. But as soon as he let his mind relax along with his body the sound of the movements of Fuu's kimono and the water brought forth the unbidden image of the ukiyoe portrait. _'Fuck. Not now.'_ He grit his teeth and mashed his eyelids together tighter. He didn't need to think about a real life version of the portrait in the water behind him. He sucked in a shaky breath. _'Relax ya stupid mofo. It's just Fuu. Just Fuu. Just Fuu. Just Fuu. Fuu. Fuu. Fuu. Fuu Fuu . . . . .'_

"AAAAHHHH!!! FUUUCK!!!"

There was an almighty splash and a yelp from behind him. "MUGEN!"

He whipped around at the sound of his name without thinking. Fuu was now _in _the river. Her unbound kimono floating around her and her soaked hair in her face as she struggled to clamber out of the shallow brook. He had to admit she looked absolutely nothing like the portrait. _'Huh. Wonder if that pretty boy was on crack or something.' _He thought vacantly before a feminine slipper struck him in the face.

"Jerk!!! Pervert!!!"

He sighed. _'Man. At least she's cooled down. Now I just gotta worry about her freezing to death during the night in wet clothes.'_ Then he snickered to himself. _'Haha. Her temper hasn't cooled down though.'_ He soon found that that little snicker was a big mistake when a second slipper connected with his head.

"Oi. Stop flingin' your slippers around unless you want to start walkin' barefoot." He growled while twirling one of her slippers around his index finger by the strap, not minding the wood knocking against his knuckles.

His only response was an enraged gurgle as Fuu slipped on a patch of algae and slid back into the stream.

He let out an amused snort before standing up and hauling her out of the water like a drowned kitten. The only difference he could see was that drowned kittens were held up by their scruffs and Fuu was being held up by the back of her kimono.

Fuu coughed and spluttered before turning to look up at Mugen with bleary water-filled eyes.  
"Mugen put me down before my kimono rips!" She shrieked. Flailing her legs in the air, trying in vain to reach the bank.

"Shit! Stop strugglin' girly or I might drop ya back in." He grunted, trying to stay balanced on the submerged, algae-covered rocks while Fuu writhed. Unfortunately, steel-lined geta were not developed for such algae filled adventures and Fuu fell backwards with Mugen as he crashed into the stream.

When he resurfaced Mugen grabbed a handful of kimono and dragged up a twice-drowned Fuu. "Oi! I told you to quit your fucking kicking!" He barked angrily.

Fuu merely whimpered wetly in response.

"Going for a swim are we?" Came a cool voice from behind the water logged duo.

'_Ah, Fuck! __Fuckin' fish face has to show up _now_ of all times. Just great.'_

Jin gave a discreet cough and turned away as Mugen successfully dragged a half-naked Fuu back to shore and tossed her onto the mossy bank.

"Look four eyes, me and girly here are gonna need ta get out of our wet clothes. If you can't handle that maybe you should go back to your fishing or go gather some wood for a fire or somethin'."

Jin merely hmmed in a way that said, 'There is no way I'm leaving you with a practically naked Fuu' and sat down facing back down river away from the wetter two-thirds of the group. "I can get wood later." was all he said.

"But I'm hungry!" Fuu whined. A healthy blush across her cheeks the only evidence left of her earlier sunstroke.

"Food can wait ya piggy girl. If you don't get out of that kimono now you're gonna freeze tonight." Mugen rumbled as he stripped off his shirt and casually tossed it over a low hanging branch.

"AAAAAH!!! EW!!! MUGEN!!! LEAVE YOUR PANTS ON!!!" Jin's eyebrow twitched.

"Huh. Well that's mean! Little Mugen's gonna freeze off ya know." Jin's eyebrow twitched twice.

"I DON'T CARE!!! JUST LEAVE THEM ON!!!" Fuu screeched. Looking like a basketful of tomatoes had decided to pluck themselves from their vine and dance the mambo on her face.

"Besides, I bet they'll dry just fine while you're wearing them anyway."

"Oh, so you do care about little Mugen! He's so happy to know. Ain't ya buddy." Mugen smirked while looking down his pants.

"MUGEN!!!!"

"Relax girly. I'm only teasin' ya." He grumped, scratching his head and turning away to stand near Jin.

Leaning down he narrowed his steely eyes, clamped a hand roughly on Jin's shoulder and rumbled, "Oi, ya bastard. I'm goin' to get us some firewood for the pig-girl's fish. If you touch her . . . . Fuck that. If you even turn around and look at her, I'll cut your fuckin' head off. Capiche?"

"Hn."

Mugen increased the pressure of his hold on Jin's shoulder.

Jin sighed. "Mugen, I will not touch Fuu. In case you haven't noticed, not only do I have much more restraint than you do where the opposite sex is concerned, I am also waiting for Shino."

Mugen grunted at this and released his hold. "I still don't trust you. I don't care if ya are waiting for that chick."

"I don't trust you either Mugen."

Mugen straightened, looking hard at Jin before turning towards the trees to search for firewood.

When Mugen had left Jin gracefully removed his gi, folded it and placed it behind his back. Clearing his throat he murmured, "Fuu. I have placed my gi behind me. Since your kimono is drying it would be best if you put it on."

"Oh. Ok. Thanks Jin." She chirped, skipping over to him and grasping at the dark blue fabric before retreating back to the tree where Mugen's haori and shirt were hanging. She quickly stripped herself of her soaked kimono and juban and hung them next to Mugen's clothing. Then slipped into Jin's gi. Curiously she sniffed at it. "Hey Jin, your clothes smell good." She stated innocently.

Jin made a funny choking noise that he quickly changed into a cough.

Mugen came crashing through the trees back into camp, carrying a load of firewood under one arm, a little less than an hour later. To find Jin meditating in the same spot he had left him and Fuu lounging in the shade on her back . . . . . wearing Jin's gi!

"What the fuck are you wearing!?" Mugen growled as he threw down the wood.

"Huh? What does it look like I'm wearing Mugen? It's Jin's gi. He gave it to me since my kimono is wet because _you_ had to yell your head off and make me fall in the stream."

"WHAT?! How is it _my _fault you fell in the stream!?"

"You yelled." Fuu pouted.

"Whatever bitch." He grunted while feeling Fuu's kimono to check if it had dried any during his absence. It was still wet, which meant Fuu would be wearing Jin's gi for a while, which put him in a distinctly foul mood.

"MUGEN!!"

"SHUT UP ALREADY!!!" He bellowed.

Jin just ignored them and continued his attempt to meditate. He was not succeeding. Every time he tried to reach toward enlightenment the yelling cut through his inner happy place and Mugen's face would pop into his head. It made him want to punch something (Preferably Mugen). This was not Jin-like, he decided, and must be avoided. The code of bushido must be upheld . . . even if he was the only one following it.  
'_Ohhhmmm.'_

The screaming match continued until both Mugen and Fuu's stomachs put up a united front and both let out a tremendous growling and gurgling.

" . . . "

Mugen let out a snort of laughter at their gastrointestinal duet and Fuu surprisingly had the modesty to blush a bit.

"Come on girly, wanna help me make the fire? Or do you wanna take care of the fish?"

Jin spoke up. "Mugen, I already scaled, gutted, and impaled the fish on sticks while you took longer than is normally necessary to gather a few twigs for a fire. They're now in the river so they'll stay fresh."

Mugen grumbled a bit at the accusation that he'd taken too long. He had taken a detour, but he had hoped Fuu and Jin wouldn't notice.  
Fuu's ukiyoe portrait had gotten soaked when he'd fallen in the stream. It wasn't the first time it had gotten wet, and it probably wouldn't be the last; but it still bothered him that it was slowly falling apart, and that the ink was starting to fade and run. He knew it couldn't be helped, nothing lasts forever, he knew that all too well. But a part of him had clung to the portrait hoping it would last. So that even when Fuu had left him, or he had left her; or when she was married, or dead he could still look at her and remember.

The extra time he had used to spread the portrait out on a rock in the shade (he knew the sun would fade it more than it already had, he wasn't stupid) for him to retrieve later when it had dried.

Moving over to where Fuu was tenaciously attempting to recreate the structure of twigs and branches she had often watched Mugen or Jin building, he crouched down beside her and proceeded to fix a few of her mistakes. Propping the wood up better in places, and coaxing and directing her in making a pile that would be suitably fire friendly. As Mugen began to blow on the rising flames, Fuu skipped over to where the fish were and plucked them out of the cool rush of water . . . . .

. . . . . . .

That night the stoic ronin, the murderous convict and the young girl each lay with bellies full of fish in their chosen spots on the slightly damp moss, lulled by the balmy night and a softly sifting breeze. The occasional flicker of a jewel bright scale in the dark water accompanied by a muted splash the only disturbance in the night.

"Hey Mugen? Are you asleep?" Fuu whispered into the stillness and soft chirping of crickets in the brush.

"Not anymore. Whadda ya want?" He groaned.

"Where do you think we go when we die?"

Mugen opened his eyes and looked up at the tiny pinpricks in the cosmos that shone and flickered like millions of floating lanterns carried in the currents of a black ocean and up to the dim, cupped moon.

"Nirai Kanai."

"Huh? What's that?" He heard rustling and felt her eyes on him.

"It's purgatory. It's where the crowmen take you when you're too close." He said in a hushed rumble.

"What do you mean 'too close'? What's it look like?"

"Too close to death . . . . . I've been there. And it looks like Hell." He grunted before turning to face away from her.  
"Now go to sleep."

" . . ."

- - - - - - - - - - - -

AN2: In case anyone doesn't know the references about the fools and colds「バカは風邪引かない」 "baka wa kazehikanai" is a common phrase in Japanese meaning that "Idiots don't/can't catch colds". A yurei,is basically just a traditional Japanese ghost. Yurei don't have legs. Oh, and in case anyone is wondering, Mugen goes commando, so it would have been horrific if he had taken off his shorts. I think Jin would have tried to castrate him. Fuu is wearing her chest wraps as usual (no idea what she wears on the bottom though. More wraps? A feminine version of the fundoshi (www. une-nana-cool. com /product/ nanafun/ howto. html – take out spaces)? I did some research on this, and several sites said that they wore _nothing_! Apparently they did wear a type of red juban so their menstruation wouldn't show though.). And just for curiosities sake, Jin wears a fundoshi.

PLEASE REVIEW!!! I write mainly to entertain myself, but it helps to know that other people are enjoying it. And it gives me the confidence to write my little heart out!


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